The Upper East branch of the Social Justice Club (SJC) has observed that lack of visionary and transformational leadership accounts for Ghana’s woes such as poverty, unemployment and inequality.
Mr Bismark Adongo Ayorogo, a member of the Upper East Branch of the Club made the observation when he delivered a lecture on the topic “Mobilization of Citizens for Economic and Social Transformation of Ghana” to commemorate this year’s republic day in Bolgatanga.
He said successive governments had failed to develop the country the way it should have been developed. The programme was organized by the SJC attracted youth and the general public and was aimed at examining what had been achieved after Ghana became republic, the challenges and the way forward .
Mr Ayorogo who is also a Civil Society Activist cited the importation of furniture by the previous government from China for the Ghanaian Parliament to buttress his argument that Ghana as a country lacked visionary and transformational leadership to transform the socio-economic development of the nation to better a lot of Ghanaians,
“If we had visionary and transformational leadership, we wouldn’t have used GHs 21million to import furniture from China for the Ghanaian Parliament when our local artisans with the requisite capacity to produce quality furniture have no jobs to do for a living. Until we learn how to consume what we have in this country, we will be consuming ourselves into poverty and social and economic transformation will continue to elude us”.
He mentioned the privatisation of many strategic national assets such as the Ghana Telecom and the decline in the agricultural sector and collapsed agro-based industries such as the Northern Star Tomato Factory and the Rice Mill and Meat factory to buttress his point.
He cited the country spending US$1 billion for importation of food into the country , the failure to grow and develop the shea industry which has the potentials of generating foreign exchange for the country as it was in high demand in the US market than cocoa , the passing of laws that promote the interest of foreign investors to exploit and cart away the country’s natural resources among others as some of the poor management systems that were affecting the growth of the country.
Mr Ayorogo mentioned countries including Malaysia, Malawi and Ghana who were all colonized by the British but Malaysia had advanced far ahead in terms of development than Ghana.He argued that research combined with the teachings of the Social Justice Clubs clearly revealed that the world had enough resources to ensure that no person went to bed hungry, lack access to quality health care, potable water, shelter, employment and quality education.
He stressed that as a result of social injustices and bad governance, poverty, unemployment, malnutrition, illiteracy and inequality had become what he described as “so cancerous in the society and making living very unbearable for the ordinary Ghanaians”.
He suggested the need for citizens to mobilize for economic and Social Transformation and proposed the need for farmers and fishermen, market women, students, hairdressers, dressmakers, persons with disabilities to come together to form a formidable national movement such as the Social Justice Clubs to raise critical voices on very important national issues to effect positive change.
“The critical voice and the presentation of our development priorities will provide alternative policy options to halt and reverse the increasing numbers living in poverty and the rising unemployment among women and young people in this country. As a start, the youth and women groups who suffer various forms of marginalisation and discrimination need to quickly get themselves mobilised by joining the Social Justice Clubs in our respective communities to fight for fair and equal justice”, he proposed.
Mr Yen Nyeya, a member of the SJC who chaired the function explained that among the aims of the movement was to bring ordinary and working people to engage with both the political and economic processes in Ghana in order to help transform the country in favour of the masses.
He drummed home the need for Ghana’s republic day to be set aside to reflect on what have been achieved so far, the challenges and the way forward.